This invention relates to a nozzle for a hand-held pump dispenser or the like. More specifically, it relates to a nozzle having a rotatable nozzle cap by which a selected orifice in the cap can be aligned with a swirl chamber mechanical breakup formed in the nozzle body to produce a desired form of discharge. The invention also relates to specific orifice shapes which may produce a conical spray pattern or a fan-type spray having narrow elongated spray landing pattern. The inventor also contemplates anti-drip means for discharge orifices.
The prior art is replete with a large number of nozzle structures adaptable for use with a hand-held pump dispensers. Many of these, such as the McKinney patents U.S. Pat. No. 4,227,650 issued Oct. 14, 1980 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,161,288 issued Jul. 17, 1979 disclose cooperative means within the nozzle for forming an axial swirl chamber. The art also includes patents in which, by rotating the nozzle cap, the discharge may selectively be a spray cone or a stream. Examples are the Micallef U.S. Pat. No. 3,843,030 which issued Oct. 22, 1974 and the Hayes U.S. Pat. No. 4,247,048 issued Jan. 27, 1981. These patents are of interest for their showing of a single offset opening in the rotatable cap to line up selectively with a swirl chamber mechanical breakup or an open channel so that the resulting discharge is a conical spray or a stream selectively.
It is also noted from the art that attempts have been made in the past to effect a spray having a narrow elongated landing pattern, a so-called fan spray. An example is disclosed in the Grogan U.S. Pat. No. 4,174,069 issued Nov. 13, 1979. To do this, on the outlet from the swirl chamber a pair of radially inward projections are formed. These projections cause a conical spray to break up and to form a substantially flat fan spray segment.
There has been a need for a pump dispenser having the ability to emit respectively spray discharges in the form of a cone spray or a fan spray. There has also been a need for means in the discharge of a dispenser for retaining the last drop emitted from the discharge orifice after completion of use.
There has also been a need for a spray dispenser in which the discharge is modified by means external of the orifice to produce a fan-type spray.